When I posted my Korokke (Japanese potato croquette) recipe on my website about a month ago, one reader requested a recipe for Japanese creamy croquettes. I’m sorry it took a long time for me to post this recipe, but thank you for patiently waiting for this Creamy Crab Croquette recipe. I hope you like it! Both kinds of croquettes are very popular in Japan. Since my dad likes potatoes, my mom usually cooked regular potato croquettes. It was more like a delicious treat to eat the kind with a creamy filling. This time, I put corn inside for my kids’ sakes since they are crazy about corn! To be honest, the creamy croquette patties are challenging to form. The mixture is very sticky and it’s tough to make the patty shape. However, I’m very sure, and my family would also agree, that it’ll be worth your effort. Enjoy!
What is Creamy Crab Croquette?
Creamy Crab Croquettes are one of the most popular yoshoku (Western-style) menu items in Japan. Called kani cream korokke in Japanese, it’s made with thick béchamel sauce (white sauce) and crabmeat. We shape the mixture into patties, bread them in panko, and deep-fry until golden brown. These creamy croquettes are crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and totally irresistible. The use of crab in this dish became popular sometime after the chef Tokuzo Akiyama of the Imperial Household Agency stated in 1923 that shellfish could be added to cream croquettes. Japanese cream croquettes were adapted from Japanese potato croquettes, which themselves were a modification of creamy French croquettes first introduced to Japan in 1887!
Ingredients You’ll Need
In this recipe, we use a béchamel sauce (white sauce) to bind the filling ingredients together.
crabmeat – real or imitation; I use canned, but you could also use fresh crabmeat corn kernels – frozen or canned; you could also try very small pieces of ham, octopus, or cheese for added protein onion – I used a regular onion, but you could try other types like spring onions or green onions unsalted butter all-purpose flour (plain flour) – for the filling and breading milk kosher salt and black pepper eggs – I use large eggs panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) olive oil – for the beaten egg neutral oil – for deep-frying
How To Make Creamy Crab Croquettes
Be patient with the patties, as the mixture is sticky and difficult to form into balls. Following are the basic cooking steps:
3 Cooking Tips for Crab Croquettes
Other Korokke Recipes You’ll Love
In Japan, there’s no shortage of croquette variations. I hope you give some of these recipes a try!
Japanese Croquettes (my Mom’s korokke recipe—the best!) Baked Croquettes Kabocha Croquettes Croquette Sandwich
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